When it comes to identifying pet allergies, the signs go beyond an occasional sneeze. The most common sign of allergies in pets is red and itchy skin, but sniffling, sneezing, and ear infections can also be telltale indicators. In some cases, the glands at the other end of your dog's anatomy can also be affected.
If your pet has seasonal allergies or food sensitivities and is also experiencing anal gland issues, there may be a connection worth investigating. This guide covers the most common types of pet allergies, how allergies affect anal gland health, and six strategies to help support your pet.
Common Types of Allergies in Pets
Allergies can affect pets similarly to how they affect people, but pet allergy symptoms can also be quite different. While humans may experience itchy eyes and runny noses, pets are more likely to develop itchy skin with secondary infections. Depending on the type of allergen, symptoms may vary.
Environmental allergens
Environmental allergens include dust, pollen, smoke, grass, mold, dander, and other substances found in your pet's surroundings. These allergens can be difficult to avoid, as recent research suggests that indoor air quality often closely mirrors outdoor air quality. Exposure can occur anywhere, even if your pet does not spend much time outside.
Food allergens
Food allergens trigger an inflammatory response that can sometimes be misidentified as a food sensitivity or intolerance. Proteins found in food — including both animal and plant-based sources — are commonly responsible for triggering allergic responses. Carbohydrates are not always the culprit, and going grain-free is often not the solution.
Flea allergy dermatitis
Flea bites can cause severe allergic reactions in pets. Dogs with flea allergies will typically bite at the base of the tail and itch frequently, and in some cases very few fleas are found. Allergic reactions to flea bites can lead to inflammation, painful skin wounds, and hair loss.
How Allergies Affect Anal Glands
Many allergens can affect your pet's anal gland health. In addition to itching, sneezing, and skin rashes, allergies can also present as symptoms related to anal sac disease. When anal glands become inflamed and swollen, it can lead to stool impaction, leaking of fluid from the rectal area between bowel movements, and excessive licking of the anal area. Scooting and a foul smell are telltale signs that your dog may be having trouble with their anal glands.
All allergens trigger an immune response. One hallmark sign of an immune response is inflammation, which causes heat, redness, pain, and swelling. This can lead to swollen tissue in many areas of the body, including the skin. The anal glands are lined by skin, so any inflammation in the skin can also affect the anal glands. When the anal glands become inflamed, it can cause swelling of the duct, preventing the gland from emptying normally and creating the potential for anal gland impaction.
Food and environmental allergens may also cause a reaction in the anal glands through direct contact with the rectum. This can happen as food allergens are processed during digestion, or as environmental allergens like grass, dust, and dander come into contact with the skin around the tail or bottom.
6 Ways to Address Your Pet's Allergies
1. Avoid the allergen
The most effective way to address your pet's allergies is to avoid the suspected allergen causing symptoms. For food allergies, removing the offending ingredient from your pet's diet will reduce allergic flare-ups. However, removing environmental allergens like pollen, dust, and dust mites from your pet's surroundings is often not fully possible.
If you suspect your pet's allergies are causing scooting, rear-end licking, or other signs of anal gland impaction, keeping the perianal and tail area clean with hygienic wipes or medicated spray can help reduce allergen exposure, relieve inflammation, and reduce bacterial or yeast overgrowth. Rectal hygiene is especially important if your pet spends time outdoors or scoots their bottom on the floor, as both can expose the area to pollen, dust, dander, and other allergens. Wiping down your pet's paws and belly after outdoor play can also help remove potential allergens.
2. Support your pet's immune response
Allergy symptoms are triggered when the immune system contacts an allergen. When the immune system is functioning properly, it responds to allergens more effectively. Supporting immune health includes regular exercise through play, a balanced diet rich in vitamins and nutrients, daily supplement chews for nutritional support, stress management, and proper hydration.
3. Use soothing ingredients
Certain anti-inflammatory ingredients can help calm inflamed skin during a flare-up. Treatments with oatmeal, aloe vera, or coconut oil may help reduce inflammation related to allergies.
4. Support GI function
Supporting your pet's digestive health can help their system process and expel allergens more efficiently. Digestive enzymes, prebiotics, probiotics, and fiber all contribute to overall health, including how the body responds to allergens. Supplementing with anal gland support powder or chews made with digestion-friendly ingredients may help reduce inflammation in the glands and improve stool quality. These strategies can help glands express naturally and may help prevent anal gland impaction and infection.
5. Help your pet express anal glands naturally
While manual expression of your pet's anal glands may sometimes be necessary, supporting natural expression is ideal. Adequate fiber intake promotes firmer, bulkier stools that can help pets express their anal glands with each bowel movement. Pets dealing with anal gland impaction from allergies, infection, or other causes will have difficulty and pain passing stool, making fiber intake an important part of treatment. Increasing fiber should happen gradually and requires adequate water intake to be fully beneficial.
6. Get medication recommendations from your veterinarian
When allergies become a persistent problem, your veterinarian may recommend allergy medication for dogs or cats. They may also request allergy testing to identify which allergens are most likely to affect your pet, and use that information to formulate allergen-specific immunotherapy to reduce the frequency and severity of allergic flare-ups.
Determining the specific allergen may take some investigative work, but once identified, this information can be a key factor in your pet's overall health. If your pet's allergies seem to be connected with scooting, licking the rear end, or changes in bowel behavior, begin by supporting their anal gland health with the Glandex collection. For allergy-specific support, explore the DermaBliss collection. Consult your veterinarian to help determine whether food or environmental allergies are the underlying cause.
